ENGL2133 Vikings and Anglo Saxon Literature

2020

4.5

1 x 2-hour lecture weekly
1 x 1-hour tutorial weekly

1 9 Units of level one ENGL topics
2 4.5 Units of level one ENGL
3 COMS1001 - Academic and Professional Communication
Must Satisfy: ((1) or (2 and 3))

1 of ENGL2420, ENGL3113 has been successfully completed

From the eighth to eleventh centuries the Anglo-Saxons of England produced the earliest works of English literature. Converted to Christianity, they produced some remarkable writing on Christian themes, but also looked back on the pagan past in poems like Beowulf, one of the greatest works of the so-called Dark Ages. The Anglo-Saxon world overlapped - and often collided with - the world of Vikings, whose stories are related in Old Norse literature from the early medieval period. Students will read a wide variety of Northern prose and poetry in translation and will also be offered an introduction to Old Norse and Old English language.

This topic aims to:

• provide an opportunity for students to study the earliest literature in English and Norse both in the original language and in translation
• assist students to develop their skills in writing about literary texts
• provide students with a basic knowledge of the grammar and vocabulary of Old English and Old Norse
• provide students with a basic knowledge of the kinds of literature written in Old English and Old Norse
• provide students with an opportunity to set Old English literary texts against a wider Germanic background through the study of Icelandic sagas
• assist students to make appropriate use of secondary material in writing about literary texts
• offer students the opportunity to respond to texts through creative writing
• allow students to discuss literary texts in class
• assist students to develop their skills in writing about and discussing texts in relation to a particular historical and cultural background

For successful completion of this topic students will:

• demonstrate their understanding of texts literary texts (including Old English and Old Norse texts) by discussing them in class and writing about them in essays and seminar papers
• show an ability to write clearly and effectively about a range of texts
• respond to literary texts through literary essays and (if they wish) through creative pieces
• demonstrate an understanding of the relevance of the cultural and historical context of literature to their reading of literature
• attend tutorials and workshops and participate in classroom activities